Editor's Note

Carol Bower's exciting photograph, "Lightworks 2," adds spirit and verve to Issue 52's cover. A painter as well, Carol manages a vibrant energy that's both playful and interesting in her photographic experiments with light and exposure atypical of most photography.

The entire TCR volunteer staff welcomes each contributor and each reader. You are the reason we keep at this honoring the literary arts, and we happily support all those who appreciate them. All the praise for this and every Issue and Feature goes to the TCR staff—from Founder, Publisher and Filmmaker, Guy Shahar, to Poetry Editors, Jennifer Wallace, Anna Catone and Christian Gullette; Fiction Editor, Elizabeth Cornell; Managing Editor, Amy MacLennan, Web Manager, David Moody and Contributing Editor, David Rigsbee. While all of us are busy with work, family, everyday's small and not so small crises and successes, it's this venue to which we return again and again for the sustenance that art provides.

TCR thanks its contributors, not only for trusting The Cortland Review with their work, but for the extra effort they make to provide audio recordings. Remember that Flash Player is the vehicle to these poetic voices, and if it's not already downloaded on your computer, you can get Flash Player free here.

Not only will you want Flash Player to hear the poems in this issue, but you'll want it when you go through our archived issues and features (since 1997), including Guy Shahar's "Poets in Person" features on Gerald Stern, Phil Levine, Stephen Dunn and Alan Shapiro in HD video.

Don't forget to stop by our fan page on Facebook and drop us a note, too. We love every personal response to what you read in our pages.

Cheers,
Ginger Murchison
Editor